Electronic devices may be used to exchange information over communication networks. For example, a mobile phone may be used to generate a text message (also referred to as a short message service message or “SMS” message). The mobile phone may send the text message to another mobile phone over the public switched telephone network (“PSTN”). A user of the other mobile phone can view the text message and respond with a text message reply, if desired. Some mobile phones are configured to send and/or receive images, video, and other media information in addition to text messages. For example, some mobile phones may generate and transmit multimedia messaging service (“MMS”) messages to other mobile devices.
Some mobile devices may be capable of executing application software and accessing a packet switched data network, such as a local area network (“LAN”) or the Internet. Such mobile devices may be referred to as “smart devices,” and include smart phones, tablets, and the like. Smart devices may use instant messaging, chat, or other application software to generate messages and send them to other devices over data networks. The recipients may be other smart devices, traditional computing devices (e.g., desktop or notebook computers), or other electronic devices. The application software that manages the messaging may provide more messaging functionally than SMS or MMS messages. For example, application software may manage group “chats” in which messages can be shared among groups of users who are using different devices. In such chats, messages can be responded to on a group-wide basis or on a private basis.